Intel Core i7-4790 vs Intel Core i7-6700

The Intel Core i7-4790 (Haswell S), introduced in the second quarter of 2014, was aimed at the mainstream desktop market.

It is manufactured using a 22 nm process and offers 4 cores and 8 threads. The integrated Intel HD Graphics 4600 and PCIe 3.0 are present, with a maximum memory bandwidth of 26 GB/s and 8 MB of Level 3 Cache. The Intel Core i7-6700 (Skylake S), introduced in the third quarter of 2015, also targeted the mainstream desktop segment.

It benefits from a more advanced 14 nm manufacturing process and also features 4 cores and 8 threads. It integrates the Intel HD Graphics 530 and supports PCIe 3.0, but achieves a higher maximum memory bandwidth of 34 GB/s and 8 MB of Level 3 Cache. In a performance comparison, the Intel Core i7-6700 shows slightly improved single-core performance and a noticeable increase in multi-core performance in certain computationally intensive applications compared to the Intel Core i7-4790, thanks to its newer architecture.

In gaming, the Intel Core i7-6700 offers a slight advantage due to higher instructions per cycle (IPC). Both require a dedicated graphics card for modern games. The Intel Core i7-6700 benefits from its 14 nm manufacturing process, which generally allows for higher energy efficiency than the 22 nm process of the Intel Core i7-4790.

Both are older models, mainly available on the used market. The Intel Core i7-6700 is more future-proof due to DDR4 support, while the Intel Core i7-4790 represents a cost-effective upgrade option for existing Haswell systems.